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Fairy Tale Theology 2/21/2014 12:00:01 AM by: Susan Lyttek

Most guys, simply by being guys, wouldn’t know a lot about fairy tales. They’d know the basic storylines from TV and video exposure and that’s about it.

My two, thanks to my fascination with the fairy tales that incorporate a Biblical truth, learned more about princesses, dwarves, and evil queens than they ever wanted to.

Biblical truth, you might ask? Yes. Many fairy tales found their origins in the Middle Ages with people who couldn’t read and write. They heard the impossibly beautiful message of Christ’s rescue of fallen humankind and translated it into a story they could remember and repeat. Along the way, the stories changed into the fairy tales we know and love today. Here are two of my favorites.

Snow White: In the original story, not the gentled cartoon version, Snow represents all of us. She was born beautiful, but her mother (purity) perishes soon after and her new stepmother (sin) pursues her with passion to kill her. Three times she faces an irresistible temptation. Twice, she appears dead, but the dwarves (her conscience) rescue her. On the third time, nothing they can do can restore her. Sin has killed her. Along comes the Prince (Christ) who loves her instantly and offers to pay for her hand in marriage. The dwarves, at first, don’t want to give up Snow White, but they realize for them, she is just a pretty corpse. As soon as the Prince sets her on the trail to his castle, Snow comes back to life. Once at the castle (eternal life), the evil queen (sin) tries once more to conquer Snow. But the Prince immediately recognizes her and uses her own nature against her to kill her forever. Snow will never have to worry about the queen again—the Prince’s actions slayed her.

Sleeping Beauty: I like this story so much that I rely on it in Guzzy Goofball and the Homeschool Play from Outer Space. http://www.amazon.com/Guzzy-Goofball-Homeschool-Outer-Space/dp/1941103146/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1391184118&sr=8-1&keywords=guzzy+goofball You know the story. The king and queen forget to invite a powerful fairy (sin) to Beauty’s christening. The baby princess is given all sorts of wonderful gifts: personal beauty within and without. But just before the last invited guest goes to present her gift, sin pronounces her death sentence. When Beauty comes of age, she will prick her finger and die. The last guest, who represents the law, says she can’t remove the curse entirely, but she can ameliorate it. So after years of growing up, Beauty falls into a deep sleep. It is so deep, that it causes everything around her to sleep as well. Many princes (the prophets and works of the law) hear about her beauty and try to rescue her, but the curse kills them, too. Finally, in the fullness of time, the right Prince (Christ) comes along and restores both Beauty and her kingdom to their original grandeur.

So, now that I have passed on this passion to you, share a fairy tale gospel today!